Local veterans honor, remember

Vasha Hunt | Opelika-Auburn News
Jason Betterson, left and John Hunter lower the flag to half-staff at the Auburn Veterans Memorial on Monday.

“I don’t need to be reminded,” Kenneth “Husky” Kirkwood said. “I remember it every day.”

Kirkwood, who served as a naval aviator in World War II, said Monday that Memorial Day means “honoring all the servicemen.”

“I was in the pacific during World War II and still have some good buddies,” he said.

Both the cities of Auburn and Opelika held Memorial Day celebrations Monday.

The City of Auburn and the Auburn Veteran’s Club Committee sponsored the 10th Annual Mayor’s Memorial Day Breakfast at the Hotel at Auburn University and Dixon Conference Center, followed by a memorial service honoring local veterans.

In Opelika, a memorial service was held at the Veterans Memorial Monument outside of city hall.

Veterans at both memorials, when asked, spoke about the meaning of Memorial Day.

When asked if the country’s current war status had any affect on the significance of the recognition of Memorial Day, Kirkwood said he thinks it probably does, but a real increase came after the 50th anniversary of WWII.

Operation Desert Storm brought tremendous interest in veterans, he said.

Although the rest of the country pauses to remember veterans on Memorial Day, Kirkwood said he does not need a special holiday.

“I live at the foot of the flag,” he said.

Kirkwood was commissioned as a naval aviator when he was 19 — in 1943. He retired from the Naval Reserves in 1973.

“I loved it,” he said.

Kirkland’s wife is also a WWII veteran.

At the City of Opelika Memorial Day Services, Leslie Digman, a veteran who spent 18-years in the Army and four years in the Air Force and who fought in the Vietnam Conflict, also spoke about Memorial Day.

“Memorial Day is a day when we support and recognize the veterans that did not make it back,” he said.

Digman thinks the holiday is more recognized now because the county is at war, especially since the Iraq War has been so publicized, he said.

“I’m glad that Iraq troops have gotten more support than Vietnam had,” said Digman, who is a member of American Legion Troop 152 in Opelika.

The mayors of both cities spoke at their respective services and each memorial had a guest of honor.

Auburn Mayor Bill Ham Jr., said he looks forward each year to honoring those who have served in the armed forces.

Dr. Douglas J. Watson, a U.S. Army Veteran, who fought in Vietnam, and the former city manager of Auburn, who was awarded the 2008 “Distinguished Veteran Award,” was the speaker at the Auburn Breakfast.

“We have a duty to honor those who are willing to protect our freedom by giving their lives,” he said. “Most Americans will not serve in the military and fewer than that will see combat.”
At the Opelika City Memorial Day Services, Mayor Gary Fuller opened the ceremonies.

“Our soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines continue to remain a centerpiece of national security,” he said.

Sgt. 1st Class (ret.) David K. Dismukes, a graduate of Beauregard High School and resident of Opelika, who retired from the U.S. Army in 2005, was the speaker.

Dismukes, who served in Panama, Macedonia, Desert Storm/Desert Shield in Southwest Asia and went on two deployments to Afghanistan and did two tours in Iraq, said even though he is retired, his uniform still hangs in his closet above a pair of polished shoes.

He misses the Army, he said. And when his son was deployed to Iraq, he said he wanted to go with him.

“I wanted to be in the Army again,” he said.

Brittany Whitley | Opelika-Auburn News
Residents stand up for the Pledge of Allegiance at the Memorial Day service in Opelika on Monday. Fred Davis, from the American Legion, led the pledge.